Yuri Sergeev is an advisor on Arctic projects at the Bellona office in Vilnius.

Yuri Sergeev fined for working with Bellona

A court in Murmansk has fined Yuri Sergeev 5,000 roubles for working with Bellona, the Oslo-based NGO which Russian authorities have deemed an 'undesirable' organisation.

The ruling in the Pervomaisky District Court of Murmansk was made public on Monday although the decision on the case came on 30 June. 

Documents from the court note that the basis for the fine was information about his work in the "international environmental organisation Bellona”, published on the organisation's official website.

“Employees of the FSB of Russia in the Murmansk region have established from internet resources that on the website of the international environmental organisation 'B', in the section dedicated to the employees of the said organisation, a publication of a photograph of Mr. S. as the administrative manager was posted,” the court's press service reported, avoiding the name Bellona and Sergeev's surname. 

In an interview with the Barents Observer, Sergeev explained that he does not intend to pay the fine and is not afraid of possible criminal prosecution.

“Environmental protection in Russia has always been under close scrutiny by the authorities. Therefore, it has always resulted in harassment, persecution, close control, being recognised as 'foreign agents', and so on. When you are engaged in environmental protection, which the Russian government considers a security threat, you must understand the risks. And I understand them,” Sergeev said, commenting on the court's decision.

Yuri Sergeev holds the position of administrative manager of Bellona's Vilnius office in Lithuania. Previously, he worked in the Murmansk office for more than a decade, including as head of the office from 2020 until February 2022.

He moved out of the country shortly after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. 

In 2017, the Ministry of Justice added the Russian branch of Bellona to the register of 'foreign agents', justifying this by claiming that the organisation allegedly engages in political activities and receives foreign funding. Despite this, Bellona continued to expand its work — in particular, launching projects in Ukraine on nuclear safety and the development of renewable energy sources.

Later, in April 2023, the Russian Prosecutor General's Office declared Bellona's activities 'undesirable' in the country. 

Earlier in July Barents Observer journalist Denis Zagore, also him originally from Murmansk, was fined 5,000 roubles in a similar case. Zagore is being persecuted for his journalistic activities. 

Currently, more than 240 organisations are listed as 'undesirable' in Russia. Almost any association can fall under this status — from human rights and political movements to NGOs, religious communities, and independent media. Among the register of undesirable organisations is also our publication - Barents Observer. 

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